If we assume that these disparities do
occur and that they have considerable costs, then the risks of putting the onus on families
to support those who have needs in order to compensate the failures and/or weaknesses
of the social protection provided by the state and/or the market are even deeper.
Moreover, important changes are occurring in family patterns (e.g. increase incidence of
lone parenthood and single-person households, as well as divorce, separation and remarriages)
which represent additional risks for a model of social protection insisting on
family responsibilities for caring (Esping-Andersen 1999; Esping-Andersen 2002).